Monolithic integrated electronic circuits and networks made by planar technology are usually connected by conductive strips. To permit selective removal of circuit elements, for example resistors, from the integrated circuit, conductive strips should be removable after the integrated circuit (IC) has been made. One arrangement of this type is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,553,830 in which probes are applied to conductive strips, and current passed through the probes to vaporize the conductive strip between the probes. This arrangement has difficulties since the transition resistance of the conductive probes to the metallized conductive strip is often a multiple of the resistance of the severing portion due to the low cross-sectional area of the contact point between the probes and the conductive strip. For this reason, substantially more electrical energy is frequently transferred into heat at the contact point between the probes and the conductive strip than at the point where the metallization is intended to be severed.